


This Years Love

by tealeavesandtrash



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Vietnam War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 19:35:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28872396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tealeavesandtrash/pseuds/tealeavesandtrash
Summary: Enklave Fest 27: Dog Tags/ 75: Valentines DayIf heaven was a person their name would be Klaus Hargreeves and maybe then Dave wouldn’t be scared of dying.But it’s not.And he is.
Relationships: Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz
Comments: 16
Kudos: 34
Collections: EnKlave Fest 2021





	This Years Love

**Author's Note:**

> this was originally meant to be just for the dog tags prompt, but then I realised how close valentines day is to the 21st and decided to add an extra level of sad :)

It’s almost ironic, Dave thinks as he sits slumped against a tree on the very outskirts of camp. He’s known this day was coming for a long time, he should have been more prepared.

February 21st 1969, Hill 689.

At the time, he’d never really paid much attention to what the cult leader - the “prophet” - had said about meeting him in the future, about dying in Vietnam. He’d pushed the memories to the back of his mind, refusing to dwell on them, but the date and location had always stuck in his mind. Maybe it was to prove to him that he was wrong, or maybe because deep down Dave was scared he was right.

But now he understands. Dave may not know the logistics of it but he knows that guy who showed up in his uncle's store in bright coloured shirts and who wove stories about the future and their lives in the was, that was Klaus, _his_ Klaus. He knows Klaus must have been right all those years ago, he’s known for the past ten months - ever since he appeared out of thin air at the foot of his bed and Dave couldn’t fight the temptation and intrigue to introduce himself on that bus.

He won't make it back home at the end of this and he’s running out of time.

The announcement came a few hours ago - new orders, they’re moving up to the frontlines first thing tomorrow morning.

It feels like everything is falling into place and Dave can’t do anything to stop it.

A week today he’ll be dead and Klaus will be alone.

It's a hackneyed cliche Dave hadn't noticed at first. It's Valentine's Day and his world is crumbling apart.

Dave had disappeared pretty quickly after the news broke - the camp is abuzz with excitement and anxiety at the prospect of getting back to the frontlines and Dave can’t deal with that right now. He’s worked his way through half a pack of smokes already just trying to get to grips with the situation.

His dog tags feel heavy around his neck. By next week they’ll belong to Klaus.

He remembers finding out his father had been killed in the Pacific, how his mother had clung onto his tags when they had been returned. It was a sentiment Dave had been too young to understand at the time, how a small hunk of metal could hold such significance, but now he does. He finds comfort in the fact he knows they’ll find their way to Klaus.

“I thought I might find you here,” comes a familiar lilting voice, dragging Dave from his thoughts.

Dave glances up with a forced smile as Klaus as he flops down next to him, close enough that their bodies are pressed together. He makes a small grabbing motion at the lit cigarette and Dave is happy to oblige.

He takes a long drag before slowly letting the smoke billow up into the evening sky. “So what brings you out here?”

Dave hums, debating how much to open up about. "I just needed air and some space to think."

Klaus eyes him. "How much space?" There a hint of apprehension in his voice, like part of him is still waiting for Dave to leave him out to dry. There are still times when Klaus's insecurities and anxieties come creeping upon him, even if it's not as bad as the start of their relationship. Like after their first night, when Klaus could barely comprehend the idea that Dave wasn't just after sex and was ready to kick him to the curb at a moment's notice.

"Not any space from you," Dave reassures him, wrapping an arm around his waist and pulling him impossibly closer until Klaus is almost sat in his lap.

Klaus lets out a content hum as he rests his head on Dave's shoulder.

Dave tries to focus on this instead of the upcoming days ahead. The way Klaus' dark curls tickle his chin, the warmth radiating from his body, the exposed slither of skin under Dave's fingers.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Klaus asks quietly.

It's a question that Dave has been pondering for a while now. Is it fair to drop a bombshell like this on Klaus knowing there's nothing either of them can do about it? Or would it be a mercy to give him time to prepare? 

"I - I don't know," he answers eventually.

Klaus reaches up, gently running his fingers through Dave's hair. "You don't have to if you don't want to, but I'll always be here if you do."

Dave leans into his touch, pressing a gentle kiss into the inside of his wrist. "I know, I love you."

Klaus smiles up at him, settling back into his side as he does. It's a beautiful sight, Dave thinks not for the first time - the way Klaus' eyes sparkle, the twitch in the corner of his lips.

A content silence subsides around them, penetrated only by the distant chatter of their unit and the quiet hum of far-off fighting. 

“It’s Valentine’s Day,” Dave says eventually, breaking the quiet. 

“I’ve never had a Valentine before,” Klaus mumbles.

“I did once. When I was a sophomore, girl called Sara-Anne left me a card and chocolate outside my locker. I panicked and pretended I never got them.”

Klaus snorts at that. “You're such a tease, probably broke that poor girl's heart.”

“I’m sure she got over it. Besides, this is better Valentine than pretending to be straight for some high schooler.”

“What, sat in the mud, hiding behind a tree in an active warzone is better than free chocolate and a potential handjob?”

“Yeah, if it means I'm with you.”

Klaus shifts then, swing a leg over Dave so he’s straddling his legs. “Have I ever told you what a sap you are?” he whispers.

Daves grins, tilting his face up so their noses brush. “You’ve mentioned it once or twice.”

“Well, it bears repeating. And if you think this is good, just wait 'til next year. We can spend Valentine's Day anywhere we want. New York, San Francisco, even Paris if you want to get fancy.”

Dave falters at that. 

Next year.

Klaus has all these plans future, all the places he wants to visit, all the animals he’s going to adopt and he’s written Dave into the center of them all. But none of them will come to fruition.

Dave swallows a lump in his throat. Klaus is too engaged with finishing off the cigarette to notice the change in mood, but once he’s flicked the butt away, Dave jolts his legs slightly to catch his attention again. This seems as good a time as any.

“Here,” he says as he removes his dog tags, gently placing the chain around Klaus’ neck. "I want you to have these."

Klaus stares in confusion, gaze following Dave's hands until he lets them rest against his chest. Then, gingerly, he takes them in his own hands, fingers lightly running over the embossed lettering.

“Why are you giving these to me?” He breathes, barely a whisper.

“Because I want you to have them,” Dave whispers back. “It's so you know I’m yours forever, that's a Valentine's saying right?”

"But what you need them?"

"Then you better stick with me."

Klaus lets out a watery giggle at that, before throwing his arms around Dave’s neck and pulling him into a messy kiss. “I think this is the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me,” he murmurs against Dave's lips.

“I don’t think the bar is very high, doll.”

“Oh shut up,” Klaus whispers as he leans in for another kiss, but just before their lips meet, he pulls back quicker than Dave can register.

And then he feels a familiar sensation of a cold metal chain around the back of his neck.

It takes him a moment to realise that they aren’t his own tags.

“There, now we match,” Klaus says triumphantly, resting his hands on Dave's chest.

Dave just stares at him for a moment in disbelief, before pulling him back in for a desperate kiss. It seems to catch Klaus off guard, but he reacts quickly, pushing back with as much force and passion as Dave.

When they pull apart, Klaus is grinning down with a lazy, dazed smile. He plants a chaste kiss on Dave's cheek, then his neck, before curling up in Dave's lap and letting his head rest against his chest.

And god, Dave could stay like this forever, tucked away from the rest of the world, soaking up every little detail of Klaus. From his unruly dark curls that Dave can’t help but run his finger through; to the flecks of green and hazel in his eyes that sparkle when they catch the light; to the tiny scar on his right cheek from a shaving nick that’s almost completely hidden by stubble.

If heaven was a person their name would be Klaus Hargreeves and maybe then Dave wouldn’t be scared of dying.

But it’s not.

And he is.

“No matter what happens,” Dave whispers softly after a while, “just know that these last ten months have been the best time of my life. I wouldn’t trade them for the world.”

He feels Klaus freeze in his arms “Don’t fucking talk like that,” he mutters, keeping his face buried in the crook of his neck.

“Klaus-”

But Klaus just shakes his head vehemently, pulling away to look Dave square in the eye. “Don’t. You don’t get to throw some big romantic gesture then start acting like we're about to break up.”

Dave drops his gaze. "I'm not, I just - I'm worried in case something happens," he whispers.

After a moment he feels Klaus take his face in his hand, tilted his head up so their making eye contact. Klaus' eyes are sparkling with tears and Dave feels a pang of guilt. 

"You ever heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy, David? It's where you think something's going to happen and you end up willing it into existence. We've made this far together and we'll make it out the side, because we're in this together and we've got each other backs, alright?

All Dave wants to do is kiss away his tears and promise that everything is going to be alright, but he can’t because he still remembers the Klaus Hargreeves that bought Mamie pink paint and the absolutely heartbroken expression as he pleaded with Dave not to enlist in the gardens of his mansion.

Instead, he just pulls Klaus in for a tight hug, clutching him tightly into his chest. He can feel Klaus’ fingers grasp at his shirt.

"I love you, Klaus. I love you so so much," he whispers into Klaus' hair.

He feels Klaus' grip tighten and the muffled response, "I love you more than anything."

**Author's Note:**

> every piece I've written for enklave involves Klaus crying and i'm not sure what that says about me 
> 
> hmu on [ tumblr ](https://carry-on-my-wayward-hobbit.tumblr.com/) if you fancy x


End file.
